Pool Party

by Linda Cargill

  Worse yet, nobody was using the cabanas to change into their bathing suits.

  Sharon knew she had to do something, and headed toward Donna and her gang first. She figured if she could get them to move toward the pool everybody else would follow.

  As she approached the girls she noticed them showing off their new jewelry to each other. Apparently Donna had a gold ring with unusual engravings. It looked too massive for her hand, but she was telling the others how she’d purchased it. “I got it at Dave’s Treasure Trove.”

  “No kiddin’!” said Elaine. “I was just there.” She showed off a pendant necklace with a heavy gold chain and an emerald dangling from the end.

  “You guys are copycats!” insisted Marge. “I bought earrings there.” She pushed back her hair and showed off her pearls set in gold. They looked dramatic and very classy with her sunglasses. She looked like a movie star.

  “Gee,” said Ruth. “I’m headed there tomorrow. Where is this place?”

  “Dave’s Treasure Trove is down near the beach,” said Donna. “He sells old jewelry, you know, antique stuff they found in all those shipwrecks off the coast.”

  “Real treasure?” asked Ruth.

  “Yeah,” said Donna. “And it costs. But it’s worth it.”

  Wouldn’t you know those snobs would be talking about jewelry? Sharon thought. All she owned was costume jewelry. She hung back, lost for words. “Hey, guys, look at the pearls I bought at Woolworth’s for five bucks!” wouldn’t exactly work.

  But then the conversation took a worse turn. “Can you believe this house?” Marge asked as she played with her earrings. “It looks like a set for an old movie, something Victorian with all these oaks and Spanish moss. Looks kinda spooky. Sharon’s mom hardly has a dollar to her name. How did they afford it?”

  “Maybe it wasn’t as expensive as it looks,” Donna said. “Maybe there’s something wrong with it.”

  Ruth said, “My dad hears lots of things since he’s the mayor. He told me Ocean House has a bad reputation.”

  “Yeah? Do tell!” Elaine and the others huddled closer.

  “Well, apparently some artist owned it a long time ago. He was crazy. He even killed people here. Or at least they disappeared mysteriously, and nobody ever saw them again. For years nobody would go near the place. They say it’s haunted by some lady he killed.”

  Sharon thought, Oh no! No wonder Cragmoor Resorts was so glad to sell Mom a franchise to operate it. A haunted house!

  Sharon slunk even farther away. She wasn’t going to be able to talk to them all evening. In fact, she wondered if she was going to be able to face anybody ever again after the party turned out to be a bust.

  At that moment Phil and his buddies tore through the yard in their suits carrying fins and snorkeling equipment with them. They did cannonballs into the pool, and even the caterers got wet.

  Then they started chasing around the pool. They were making so much noise they could even be heard above the band.

  One by one the kids took notice. They forgot about their little cliques and drifted toward the pool. Soon they joined Phil and his buddies. Some even headed toward the sauna and whirlpool.

  Sharon felt a surge of happiness. Leave it to Phil to save the day! He’d told her the pool party they’d originally planned was going to make her more popular. Now he was keeping his promise despite the jerk who’d tried to ruin everything.

  Sharon thought, Eat your heart out, whoever you are. You who spent all your money for nothing and invited all the wrong kids! You can’t ruin this party. No way!

  Sharon was about to join them when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

  There stood a guy with a startling dark gaze and curly black hair hanging in his eyes, which were further hidden behind wire-rimmed glasses.

  Dan.

  “Hey, Sharon, don’t you think you ought to call off the party? Something awful funny’s goin’ on around here.” He was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. He obviously hadn’t planned to swim.

  “Are you crazy? Things are just getting going.” She turned away.

  He caught her by the hand. “Did you know those caterers aren’t in the yellow pages?”

  “Maybe they’re from out of town.”

  “Who orders from caterers miles away?” Dan asked.

  “What’s your point?!” She put her hands on her hips.

  “Maybe the food’s poisoned.”

  “Oh c’mon, Dan, get real! This Best of the Best looney may have a screw loose somewhere, but he wouldn’t try to murder fifty kids at a pool party!”

  “You think he’s a nice guy? That’s why he spent all this money and sent those weird invitations? You get real! I’m callin’ the cops!”

  “And spoil my party!”

  He sighed. He took her by the shoulders and positioned her right under the tower. “See that window up there in that octagonal tower? Somebody’s watching us.”

  She shook her head. “Dan, if you’re gonna lose your marbles, do it at somebody else’s party.”

  She turned away in disgust and started across the lawn.

  “I think it’s Phil and his buddies!”

  She spun around. “How dare you! Phil’s the one who saved this party. He wouldn’t—”

  “How do you really know? You don’t know anything about him except he’s some beachbum drifter. You don’t even know where he came from and what he’s doing here. And—”

  “You know what I think, Dan?” Sharon backed away from him. “You’re just jealous because I’m going out with Phil.”

  “You asked me to come here. Remember?”

  “Look, I’m gonna have a good time. If you call the police, I’ll—I’ll never talk to you again!” Sharon ran across the lawn to the pool area and didn’t look back. She hoped Dan would just disappear.

  She joined her guests and played a game of water tag. Everybody was playing. Nobody was hanging back. The only odd thing she noticed was that Donna, Elaine, and Marge were wearing their gold in the pool. Did they think it would get stolen or something?

  After the games, it was chow time. The caterers had everything ready. Kids hungrily grabbed plates and helped themselves. They sat at long picnic tables or found their own places under the trees. But this time they mingled. The cliques had broken up. Donna, Elaine, Marge, and Ruth were talking to everybody.

  Suddenly one of the cooks asked, “Where’s the salt? It was here just a minute ago.”

  Everybody stopped and looked around. Sue said, “Search me. I didn’t see anybody make off with a saltshaker.”

  “Neither did I,” laughed Angel, looking like Cinderella at the ball.

  The cook insisted upon perfection. He wouldn’t serve any steaks until someone had found the salt. “Miss Jones, if you would stand here and watch the steaks for a minute, I’ll run back to my van.”

  Sharon stood guard over the steaks. The other caterers didn’t have one man to spare. But when the cook didn’t return, she sighed, “Would somebody go into the kitchen and grab the saltshaker? These steaks are going to burn.”

  Donna had been the first to finish her lobster. She was sitting at the picnic table fidgeting with her gold ring. She stood up, stretched, did a cheerleader jump, and said, “I need some exercise after all that food. I’ll go.”

  They waited a few more minutes. The steaks were all well-done by now, and neither the cook nor Donna had returned. Sharon took the steaks off the flame to keep them from burning.

  “I’ll go see what’s keeping Donna.” Elaine yawned, toying with her gold and emerald pendant.

  Elaine headed into Ocean House at a trot. Sharon heard the door swing shut behind her.

  Sharon counted to ten, then one hundred. Elaine didn’t come back. Three people were missing—the cook, Donna, and Elaine. The caterers were beginning to eye each other. Suddenly Dan was at Sharon’s side. “Told you there was something fishy going on! You wouldn’t believe me.”

  “I’m sure there’s a perfectly logical explana
tion.”

  “Yeah, you mean like one of Phil’s party games!”

  Marge stood up and stretched. Her earrings caught the glow of the pool lights and reflected them back. “I wonder what’s keeping Donna and Elaine? Is this some practical joke?”

  “Really, you don’t need to go.” Sharon tried to stop her. An icy premonition prickled her spine.

  But Marge was already headed toward the inn.

  Everyone waited tensely. Then Dan said, “I’m gonna go look myself.”

  Sharon caught him by the hand.

  He turned to look at her, “Thought you didn’t care.”

  A minute or two later Dan returned holding the saltshaker high in the air. “I found it on the top shelf. Nobody was around. I didn’t see Donna, Elaine, or Marge anywhere, and I checked upstairs and down. Their cars are still here, too. Sorry, Sharon, I called the police.”

  No one said a word. The lights scintillated off the deep, dark, murky surface of the black pool.

  Three girls and one cook had vanished into the night. Without a trace.

  Chapter 2

  Donna, Elaine, and Marge had vanished. Their parents hadn’t heard from them. Their friends didn’t know where they’d gone. No one had seen them leave, not even Mrs. Jones or the caterers. After the girls had run into Ocean House to get a saltshaker, no one had seen them again.

  There was no blood anywhere, no signs of a violent struggle. No furniture was knocked over, no windows smashed. There were no frantic calls to 911—except for Dan’s.

  The police had taken all the kids at the party aside and interrogated them. They didn’t make any bones about it. If there was foul play it was somebody that the girls knew. The girls had obviously gone with them willingly.

  The police immediately ruled out a prank staged by the girls. Their cars were in the parking lot at Ocean House. They had left their purses, money, and checks in the cabanas. They’d even left their clothes. They couldn’t have gone very far with nothing in the world but their wet bathing suits.

  Newspaper reporters set up camp on the lawn. The police surrounded the place. People crowded into the front lobby asking questions. The residents of Amelia Island weren’t accustomed to this sort of thing.

  The police had cordoned off the guest quarters except for the rooms where people were staying.

  The next morning Sharon was surprised to find Vicki, Angel, and Sue knocking on her door along with the rest of the locals.

  Vicki was wearing her most serious newspaper reporter expression. She stepped in front of the other two girls. “You know, Sharon, we were thinking. If something’s happened to Donna, Elaine, and Marge, someone at the party had to be responsible. Sue, Angel, and I were thinking we ought to get together. Keep our eyes open and tell each other and the police if we notice anything suspicious.”

  “You mean, form a sort of pact?” Sharon asked. Normally she would have thought it was a pretty uncool idea, but under the circumstances, she had to admit it made sense.

  Angel spoke up. “Some jerk probably targeted the girls. We don’t want to be next.” She shivered delicately.

  “Do you think it was the caterer?” Sharon asked.

  “No way!” said Sue in her practical sort of way. “The police found him knocked out in the parking lot. That’s why he never came back to the party.”

  “All right. I agree. We’ll meet regularly at school,” said Sharon.

  Angel insisted they take a kind of oath. Sharon thought that was overly dramatic, but she humored Angel. So they went into the parlor, put one hand on top of each other’s, and promised to report everything honestly. Sharon couldn’t believe she was clasping hands with girls she wouldn’t have even said hello to weeks ago, but who knew what would happen next?

  She caught Sue winking at her. Sue thought Angel a bit much, too. Sharon caught herself smiling back. Maybe these girls weren’t so bad after all.

  In the midst of all the hustle and bustle Sharon was surprised to spot a girl she’d never seen before sitting in the middle of the grand staircase. People walked around her, even the police. Nobody seemed to notice her.

  As Sharon got closer, she saw that the stranger was busily sketching.

  The girl was about her own age with long, sheeny, coal-black hair down to her shoulders. She was very elegantly dressed in designer shorts and a matching top. Her legs were long, slender, and crossed in front of her. Her arms and hands were perfect, too. Sharon told herself she’d never seen anyone so beautiful in her life.

  “Oh, Sharon, I wanted to introduce you to someone!” Her mother looped her arm around Sharon’s waist and led her over to the stranger.

  The girl looked up from her drawing and smiled with eyes that were the most exotic shade of violet Sharon had ever seen.

  “Sharon, this is Miss Irene Cragmoor, the daughter of Mr. Cragmoor, the franchiser from whom we bought the right to operate this resort. Her father owns Ocean House. She arrived this morning from England.”

  “Hi!” was all Sharon could manage. She felt intimidated. The girl’s father must be loaded. No wonder her mother was nervous. This was not a great time to have the franchiser’s daughter pay a surprise visit.

  Sharon’s mother quickly left the girls to get acquainted. Irene smiled warmly at Sharon and motioned for her to sit down. She then passed her sketchbook to Sharon so she could get a better look.

  It was an elaborate chalk drawing of the main reception area at Ocean House. Irene had perfectly rendered all the details of the dark woodwork, the paneling, the gargoyles on the bannister, the silk-covered furniture, and the brass light fixtures.

  “Well,” Irene said, in a clipped British accent. “Do you think it’s any good?”

  “Wow! I’ll say so. You’re really good!”

  “Oh, I don’t know if I’d go that far!” Irene said modestly. “It’s just a hobby.”

  Irene retrieved her pad and flipped through the pages. Each one held drawings of Ocean House and its gardens. Sharon particularly liked the detailed sketches of the pool and the way they emphasized its unique and mysterious shape.

  Suddenly Sharon noticed an image she didn’t recognize. It was an elaborately dressed antique doll with long blond hair hanging freely over her shoulders. The doll sat in a rocking chair, looking very solemn with pursed lips. The doll’s features looked so real it was almost uncanny. If she hadn’t known better, Sharon would have sworn it was a real young lady.

  Sharon didn’t know what to make of it. “Do you collect dolls?” she asked Irene. She knew enough about the hobby to understand that some finer specimens could be very valuable—an appropriate hobby for a rich heiress.

  “Oh no!” Irene laughed. “In fact, I was going to ask you the very same thing. I found this doll upstairs in one of your rooms.”

  Now Sharon’s curiosity was up. What was a valuable doll like that doing in Ocean House? Had one of the guests left it behind?

  “What room is it in?” Sharon studied the drawing. “I’ve never seen this doll before.”

  “That fancy suite at the top of the stairs, the one with the tower and the view of the pool.” Irene answered. She obviously knew Ocean House very well.

  “How did you get in there? The suite’s occupied.”

  “They were checking out.” Irene nodded toward a well-dressed lady with a little girl in tow coming down the stairs. The girl had a long ponytail tied with a pink ribbon. The lady’s heels were making an awful racket on the wooden stairs. There were two reporters behind them, and the lady kept putting them off. When she reached the front desk, she stopped.

  “May I help you?” Sharon’s mother asked.

  “I’d like to check out.”

  “I’m sorry if all this fuss today has inconvenienced you, but—”

  “Driven me mad is more like it! All these reporters keep knocking on my door, not to mention the police. I haven’t had a moment’s peace.”

  “I’m sure things will settle down after today,” her mother said.
r />   “Besides, our room is much too cold,” the woman continued.

  Sharon’s mother was very apologetic. “We could have the repairman check out the air-conditioner.”

  “I don’t think it’s the air-conditioning. The room’s cold even when I turn it off.”

  Her mother laughed nervously. “That’s impossible!”

  “Well, you’re welcome to sleep in my bed!”

  The little girl tugged at her mother’s hand. “Is the nice lady going to come with us?” she asked. “I’ll miss her. She gave me candy.”

  “That’s another thing. My daughter claims that some woman has been barging into our bedroom in the middle of the night, talking to her, giving her candies, and sitting by the bed. I’ve never seen her, but I certainly hope you report her to the police. Perhaps she has something to do with all the trouble around here.”

  Now Sharon’s mother was red-faced. “Did you lock your door?”

  “Absolutely! But I guess the doors around here are so old that they don’t work properly either.”

  The little girl spoke up again. “But the pretty lady will cry if I don’t say goodbye! She’s always crying, you know.”

  “C’mon!” Irene whispered to Sharon. “There’s nobody in the room right now. Let’s go up, and I’ll show you.”

  Sharon hated to desert her mother, but she didn’t think there was anything she could do. Ocean House did have air-conditioning problems. It was old. As for people breaking in during the middle of the night … well, Sharon would rather not think about that, especially after the disappearances.

  The double door to the tower suite had been left wide open. The girls walked right in.

  Before they moved to Ocean House Sharon had never seen such an elegant room. The mahogany furniture belonged to the last century. Lace curtains fluttered in the window. A Persian carpet covered the wooden floor. A spiral staircase led up to a third-floor tower and a balcony overlooking the pool.

  Irene showed Sharon the doll sitting in a rocking chair underneath the window. “Isn’t she beautiful?” Irene carefully picked her up.